mason jar soap dispensers

There comes a time when you have to stop looking for the perfect soap dispenser. Somewhere around 2:30am on Pinterest, my time had come.

I had scoured every home store, boutique and flea market I could think of, until I finally came to terms with the fact that a unique, simple, pretty, non-factory-assembled-looking soap dispenser might not exist.

Fortunately, I stumbled upon a pinned project that gave me inspiration: soap dispensers made from mason jars. Mason jars! They’re not just for canning (or country weddings).

If you have a special fondness in your heart for these pretty vintage vessels, this is an easy project to add a little rustic charm to your bathroom or kitchen.

Mason Jar Soap Dispenser

You’ll need:

Vintage Mason Jar: easily found on eBay or Etsy, you can get them in clear, aqua, or (more rarely) cobalt blue, amber, or purple

Lid Prep: Some of the vintage zinc lids have glass on the back (all of mine did). You’ll need to remove this glass before drilling. Turn the lid upside down so the glass is showing, then take a hammer and whack the glass. It should shatter or crack so you can carefully remove the glass pieces.

Drill baby, drill: using an extra large drill bit (and ideally persuading your extra-strong boyfriend to do this for you), drill a hole into the lid. It should be just large enough for the plastic soap dispenser part to fit through.

Attach & cut: Screw the dispenser into the lid; secure the pump to the lid with super glue and let dry. Cut the dispenser tube until it just barely grazes the bottom of the jar.

No need to stop at soap dispensers, the jars are also great for holding cotton balls, q-tips, goldfish, or whatever else might look nice next to your sink. We used a set of three sizes – pint, quart, half-gallon – to add a little apothecary vibe to our guest bathroom.